What They Don't Know
by Mariel1
Summary: Connie and Hope have made a promise to each other to keep their abilities a secret from the rest of the Family, both for their own protection and for the Family's. But are they the only ones who can do things? Part 10 of the Lucky Seven series.
1. Chapter 1

"Secrets"

"Part 1: What They Don't Know..."

_Author's Note: This takes place when Connie and Hope are in their 'teens', and Chance is on about the level of a ten-year-old. This is a chapter story, but it's only the first story with the title "Secrets". Later on there will be a "Part 2", and possibly more, but they can't be part of the same story. Future stories that have nothing to do with "Secrets" will probably jump around the timeline a bit, since I haven't yet worked out an order I'm comfortable with, but I'll be giving you guys a heads up when something backtracks or skips ahead. I don't own the Care Bears. Soulful Heart Fox belongs to NebulaBelt, and Regal and Co. belong to me. _

The Liger Twins were on their way home. Connie and Hope had a secret, one that they kept hidden from the rest of the family. As far as they knew, none of the others had any sort of special abilities. It had started out as a game, really. Something they had that was all their own. Like the rest of their Family, they could send out a rainbow-colored beam of light from their tummy symbols, and they could create things as well. Like the others, such actions soon tired them, but their endurance level expanded with practice. Unlike the others, they could do things..._strange_ things. Connie called her 'power' _Freeze Frame_, and if she concentrated hard enough she could make a person stand still indefinitely. Hope didn't have a name for her ability, but she had expanded the range of her protective 'bubble' to fifteen feet.

And _no one_ was to know about it. Connie had become aware of what she could do at a very early age, but she had said nothing about it to her sister or her parents; she hadn't even attempted to do it again until Hope came to her and told her about the incident with Beastly and the tree. This made them both wonder; was this a one-time thing, or could they do it again? They tried, and found that they could. The possibilities that came with such abilities weren't lost on them; they could use them to get certain things, or to sneak out of the house to have a little fun. But they did no such thing. Partly because it occurred to them that if they used their abilities indiscriminately, they would eventually be found out and get in trouble. Perhaps their new fun powers would be taken away somehow; after all, adults knew things that little cubs didn't. Also, they really didn't have any desire to unnecessarily frighten anyone, or at least be seen as _weird._ Then, as they got a little older and considered the unusual interest No Heart seemed to have in them, they realized that it was better if they didn't advertise what they could do. If any future siblings possessed a secret ability, that was something No Heart couldn't torture out of the others if they didn't know.

The less No Heart knew, the better. There was no doubt that he knew about Connie's _Freeze Frame_ and Hope's _Bubble_. That couldn't be helped now. But if Chance had any sort of power, it would be better if the wizard didn't find out what it was. The trouble was determining whether or not Chance had any sort of power; if he didn't, Connie sure as heck wasn't going to tell him, and neither was Hope.

On most calm evenings, when the Missions for the day were done and the evening meal had been eaten, Connie and Hope would sneak off to practice. They had several 'practice spots', and they never used the same one two days in a row. If it wasn't for that darned curfew of theirs, they could be out doing this for longer than their allotted two hours, and practice until well after 10:00. They were already late coming home because Connie had forgotten to 'unfreeze' her sister, and had nodded off.

"I think Uncle Brave Heart's finally beginning to get suspicious." said Hope as they walked briskly in the direction of their home.

Contrary Heart chuffed softly through her nose, and snapped her fingers. "_This_ for his suspicions."

"Con, that's disrespectful..." Hope said reproachfully.

"Oh, it's not. Has he come right out and asked you where it is we go every other night?" asked Connie.

"No, but..."

"But nothing. All I meant was that I don't think he's suspicious at all, or if he was, how could he prove it? Hmm? It's not as if we're doing anything wrong, you know." Connie squirrelled her chewing gum to her other cheek, and kicked a cloud puff out of her path.

Hope sighed. "Whatever you say, Con..."

Connie glanced over, and nudged her. "Hey, don't look like that. What makes you think he's suspicious?"

"He gave me a funny look today. He wanted to know if we enjoyed our movie last night...you know, the one we didn't go to..." Hope glanced sidelong at her sister, who groaned, and she continued in a wry voice, "He caught me off guard, and I said 'what movie?'. I had to pass my forgetfulness off as fatigue, but I don't think he believed me."

Connie sighed, and shook her head. "Not your fault. You know it's one of _their _tricks, trying to catch us in a fib. You _know_ why we can't say..." She didn't finish, but nodded significantly.

Hope knew. She even agreed. But it wasn't easy for her to be deceptive. Especially not with certain members of the Care Bear Family, and as she opened her mouth to reply, she heard a twig snap. She glanced over her shoulder, and when she saw Soulful Heart Fox striding towards them in the distance her heart sank. '_And here is the one who is the hardest to lie to, because he can see a lie from a mile away. And..._'

"Hey, Connie..." Hope whispered, "We're being followed, and he'll catch up with us in a minute."

Connie didn't bother to look. "You know what to do."

The twins abruptly turned away from each other, as if one was oil and one was water, and they headed off in opposite directions. If Soulful Heart wanted to continue to follow them, he would have to pick only one.

Soulful hadn't suspected that they were up to something until they split up; he had only wanted to know why they were out past their curfew. But now they had his hackles raised. '_Well, well, what are they up to?_' He knew exactly what their game was, but he wasn't going to just quit and go home. Who was it who was normally the ring leader? Why, it was Connie! He turned aside and followed her, jogging to catch up.

Connie nonchalantly cracked her gum, and turned on her heel to face him. "Hey."

"Hey yourself." he folded his arms, and frowned. "Where were you?"

Connie looked mildly incredulous, but she wasn't exactly an easy nut to crack. "We just lost track of time, that's all...You know how Missions go..."

The fox felt a wave of anger and resentment as he recognized a lie for what it was. "Where were you?" he asked, then he proceeded to ask several questions, one after the other, not giving her time to think of a lie. "What country? What state? What city? What was the kid's name? Was it a male or a female? What was the problem, and how did the two of you help him...or her...if he or she even exists?"

Connie laid back her ears, and cocked her head to one side. Then she stepped a little closer to him and proceeded to look him up and down. "Hmm...red, bushy tail, no stripes...You don't look like my dad to me."

Soulful Heart sputtered indignantly, mentally grabbing about for a good retort, but for the life of him he couldn't think of one. He finally said, "I changed your diapers, kid! I won't have you lying to me! All I asked was a simple question, 'where were you', and you won't answer it! This leads me to believe you were doing something you shouldn't, and I want to know what!"

"You asked more than that one question, and maybe I don't _want_ to tell you were we were! We weren't doing anything wrong, we just wanted to goof off without having to report to someone for once. Is that wrong? Well, _is_ it?"

Soulful was uncomfortably aware that she stood an inch or two taller than he. He looked her in the eye, and said, "Then why lie? Is this how you treat your _friends_, if that's even what I _am_ anymore?"

'_Oh great, here we go with the guilt trip..._' Connie thought. "Look, don't give me that..." she said, "I really don't think it's anyone's business where we were, or what we were doing. I'm looking you in the eye and telling you we _weren't doing anything wrong_, and that isn't a lie. I'm also telling you that, friend or not, we _don't _want to be interrogated every time we go out. It's a little thing called _privacy_, ever heard of it?"

"I..." Soulful began, but he was losing momentum, and looking more and more hurt by the fact that she was refusing to tell him the truth. As contrary as she might be, why would she continue to stay mum on the subject if there wasn't something wrong or dangerous going on? _Was_ she in danger? And her sister? A nagging feeling of dread came over him.

"I'm not a little cub anymore. I may still have a little while to go before I'm an adult, but I wish you'd let us _grow up!_ And that's a collective 'you', for everyone here! I'm sorry if you don't like it, but that's the way it is."

Even as she said it, she wanted to slap herself. Protecting their secret was one thing, but she was beginning to see that this meant protecting it at the expense of someone's feelings. Maybe more than one 'someone', eventually. Was it worth it? She didn't know, and she was beginning to doubt it. She opened her mouth to say something else, but the fox turned to leave.

"Wait..." she began, but he shook his head.

"Why?" he asked bitterly, "Will you tell me if I do?"

Connie looked at him as he met her eyes one last time, and she felt a slow, blossoming pain begin in her chest as she said what had to be said. "I...won't."

After a long silence, Soulful Heart said, "That's what I thought." and left. Connie wanted to stop him, but it seemed that she was frozen to the spot. She wondered briefly if her power had gotten away from her, but of course it hadn't.

"Great," Connie said to herself, "Now I'll be getting the silent treatment from him for a while..."

Coming back to herself, and realizing how late it was, she Called herself a flashlight and ran for home. It occurred to her that Soulful might blab to her parents, and then there might be an argument and an interrogation. '_I don't care_,' she kept telling herself, '_I don't care..._'

Stellar was waiting at the door, checking his watch and looking both worried and annoyed. He became relieved when he sighted her, and when she reached the porch he stood aside to let her pass. "Hope got in twenty minutes ago. Why're you so late?"

Thinking quickly, Connie said, "I thought I'd drop by Grams Bear's place and say hi to Tugs, but-" she trailed off when she saw Tugs sitting in the living room between Hope and Chance, "-he wasn't home, and that's why. Hey, Tugs!"

"Hey, Connie. I just dropped by to return a DVD, and your parents asked if I wanted to wait to say hello, so I did." said Tugs.

"Ramble, ramble, ramble..." muttered Chance before quailing under his sister's glare.

Connie couldn't remember having loaned him one of her DVDs, but when she got a good look at the cover she saw that it wasn't _hers_ after all, but Hope's. '_What would she be doing lending him a DVD?_' she thought, then pushed the thought away. What did it matter? He was just a friend, to both of them. It wasn't as if he was her boyfriend, or anything... "Oh. Well, hi..."

Hoping to hide her flaming cheeks, Connie retreated to the kitchen to spit out her gum and to gather her thoughts. '_This is shaping up to be a pretty _crappy_ day_...' she thought sourly as she got herself a glass of water. She couldn't account for the sudden bad feeling that came over her, and she couldn't put a name to it. It wasn't just the fight she'd just had with Soulful, though she certainly felt badly about that. Was she actually _jealous_ of her sister, when there was no evidence that Tugs even liked her that way? Or that Hope even liked_ him_ that way? '_I hate puberty...I hate it, hate it, hate it._'

"Is there something you want to tell me?" asked Regal from directly behind her.

"Gluk!" Connie gagged, spitting her water into the sink and coughing a little. "Don't...don't do that..."

"Sorry." Regal chuckled a little, rapping her lightly on the back. "Tugs left, by the way. That wasn't much of a greeting, I have to say..."

Connie shook her head. What could she say? '_Sorry Mom, I had to leave the room because he borrowed Hope's DVD and not mine, and I was getting all jealous and freaky about it, and I didn't want him to see, and I didn't want to turn into some over possessive psycho-witch and embarrass myself. That's all._'

No.

"I'm tired. I think I'll take a bath and go to bed." said Connie.

"Don't you want your supper?" asked Regal, looking worried now.

"Not hungry. G'night, Ma."

Regal watched her older daughter walk out of the kitchen, idly rubbing a paw over her just-noticeably-pregnant belly, and thought detachedly, '_It seems like a long time since you called me 'Mommy'...'

* * *

_

Connie emerged from the shower, feeling tired and strangely drained, and she could think of nothing better than a good night's sleep. When she entered her room, she saw a plate of fettucini alfredo on her desk. '_Oh, Mom...You're not going to let me rest unless I eat, are you?_' She picked up the fork, and she tried to eat, but her appetite failed her. She was too upset, and as good as the food was, the thought of eating made her sick. She sighed, brought her dinner down to the kitchen, and covered the plate with plastic wrap before putting it in the refrigerator.

She went back up to her room and crawled into bed, and she was almost asleep when she heard someone whispering her name. "Hummh?"

"Connie..." Chance whispered again.

Connie opened one eye, then sighed and sat up. "What's up? Besides me?"

"I..." Chance rubbed the back of his neck, and looked down. "Can I talk to you?"

Seeing Chance acting hesitant and meek was so out of character that Connie was immediately wide awake. "Sure...what's wrong?"

"Nothing..." he shrugged, looking evasive.

"Nothing? You didn't wake me up for 'nothing', Chance. What's the matter?" she asked.

"Well..." Chance sat on the bed beside her, and swung his legs a few inches off the floor. "I don't _know_ if something's wrong. I don't know what it is. I...I did something today with my tummy symbol. Something _weird_, and I can't 'splain it..."

_To Be Continued..._


	2. Chapter 2

"Secrets"

"Part 1: What They Don't Know..."

"Chapter 2"

_Author's Note: Thanks for the reviews, guys! I really appreciate it. And that was a good guess, Kageryu Wolf!_

"Go on…" Connie told her brother, conflicting feelings of excitement and dread washing over her in a cold, electric wave. Already she had a good idea of what he wanted to tell her; he was like them, he was special, he was different. He could do something. He would also have to share the burden, and that was what it was becoming already. A burden.

"If you laugh..." Chance raised his eyes to meet hers, a defiant glint marring the dark irises, "I swear, I'll tell _everyone _you're in love with Tugs."

Connie felt her face grow warm, and if he didn't look so frightened she would have delivered some empty threat or other to shut him up. "I am _not_ in love with Tugs, and I won't laugh. Just tell me."

And so, Chance told her what had been bothering him all afternoon. "I was looking for one of my action figures in Mom's garden, and I couldn't find it. There were too many weeds..." he trailed off, remembering how much it had rained recently, and how the weeds had sprung up. Their mother had yet to find enough free time to weed her cucumber patch. "I couldn't find it, and I got mad, and...I'm grounded, by the way."

His sister didn't see what this had to do with him not being able to find an action figure, and she told him so. He looked at her, and said quietly, "Have you _seen_ Mom's cucumber patch today?"

"Yes." Connie nodded.

"Well, you can't anymore. It's..." he sighed and got up, walking over to the window and indicating that she should look out of it.

Connie looked, and she rubbed her eyes to make sure it wasn't just a trick of the moonlight. It wasn't. Regal Heart's cucumber patch was nothing more than a blackened bed of ash. She gaped at the sight of it, and looked down at Chance. She was almost afraid to ask what he had done.

Chance was shaking, his head hanging low so that his bangs fell in his eyes. "I didn't know what to tell 'em...They wouldn't have believed me if I...So I had to tell 'em I was playing with m-matches..." He choked back a sob and covered his face, and Connie felt her heart constrict as she hugged him.

"It's okay, Chancie...you didn't do anything wrong, it was an accident..." she told him, "Don't cry..."

"I got in so much trouble...and I didn't even mean to do it..." he told her, though he hadn't actually told her what it was he had done in the first place.

"I know." she said, getting him some tissues and patting him gently on the back as he fought to control himself.

"I d-didn't even tell you what I did, how can you know?" he asked, blowing his nose.

Connie hesitated, and sat down on the bed. She patted the mattress beside her, indicating that he should sit as well, and replied, "Why don't you just go ahead and tell me what you did, and I'll tell you how I know."

Chance didn't look at her as he told her everything that had happened. He had been looking for his action figure for an hour, and he was beginning to get angry. He thought, '_If all these weeds weren't here, I'd be able to find him. Stupid weeds..._' He hadn't noticed that his tummy symbol was beginning to glow bright orange, or that the grass around him was beginning to wilt and give off steam. He crouched down and began trying to thin the forest of grasses, but even for an adult Care Bear Cousin it would have taken at least a day to clear the garden of them. Finally, in a fit of pique that only children and cubs are capable of, he yelled, "I wish they'd all just go _away!_" As soon as the words left his mouth, his tummy symbol shot out a jet of orange flame. He had screamed in terror, and in his fear he was unable to stop the flames that spewed forth and reduced his mother's garden to cinders. It had to have been a _very_ hot flame to burn such green plants so quickly, but none of the flames even touched him.

"How'd you get out of there, Chance?" asked Connie.

"I...I don't know. I started yelling...'Stop it, stop it', and...and when I said that, it _stopped_. I'm not lying, Connie, honest, I'm not lying..." he told her.

"I believe you." she told him softly, not wanting to be overheard by their parents.

"Then you're crazy," Chance told her, "cuz I'm not sure _I_ believe me. It all seems like a bad dream or something, but the garden…It's still all burned up." He sniffled, remembering the terrible scolding he had gotten, how his mother had told him he could have been killed, he could have started a wildfire. "I…I'm scared, Con…What's _wrong_ with me?"

"Nothing's wrong with you, Chance…" Connie told him gently, squeezing his paw. It was as much to receive comfort as to give it, because she hadn't expected something like this. Hope's ability seemed to be purely defensive, and Connie's own could really go either way. For example, she could use it to rob a grocery store, freezing the security cameras and taking her time, but of course she'd never do something like that. Chance's power, on the other hand…it was just plain _dangerous._ Supposing he had unleashed it during a temper tantrum when he was a small cub, and…But Connie pushed the thought away. Nothing like _that _had happened, and she would do everything in her power to help him keep it that way.

"Connie…_Why_ do you believe me?" he asked, looking up at her. He wasn't embarrassed that she had seen him cry; he was too upset to be.

"Because…" Connie considered getting Hope, but decided against it. There would be enough time to tell her in the morning, and right now reassuring her brother was more important. "Because I can do something too."

Chance cocked his head as if trying to decide whether or not to believe her, and asked, "What?"

"First you have to promise not to tell anyone." She said.

"Why?" he asked.

"Because I'm not sure how the rest of the Family would react…" she said, which was true enough, "And mostly because No Heart might use it against us."

Chance snickered for the first time. "What can _he _do? He wears a _dress._"

"They're _robes,_ dingbat…" Connie told him, rolling her eyes, and he laughed a little. "Do you promise, or not?"

"Yeah, I guess so…" he agreed reluctantly, "So, what _can_ you do?"

"I can freeze people. I can make them stand still." She told him.

"Show me!" he said excitedly, perking up.

She shook her head. "I'll have to show you later, on Hope. If I did it to _you_, you wouldn't notice it unless I moved things around."

"Wait a minute…How do I know you aren't kidding around, and Hope won't stand still just cuz you told her to?" he asked.

Connie flicked her left ear in a half-derisive fashion, and said, "How do I know you weren't just playing with matches?"

Chance's eyes welled up again, and he insisted vehemently, "I _wasn't!_"

Connie winced a little; she hadn't meant to upset him. "I know, and I believe you…and I'm telling you the truth. I promise I'll prove it to you, but not tonight. Okay?"

Chance nodded, and asked, "Can…can Hopie do something too?"

"Yeah…"

When Connie didn't elaborate, Chance prompted, "What can she do?"

"That's for her to say, not me." Connie said, and when his face fell she pointed to the clock. "Listen, it's almost 11:00, and I know we're _both _tired. We'll talk about this tomorrow, the three of us. Go and get your PJ's on, and don't worry. There's _nothing _wrong with you."

"You _sure?_" he asked.

Connie chuffed slightly through her nose, and scratched her chin as she looked at him appraisingly. "Well, aside from your hairdo, and dirty ears you could grow 'potaters' in…" she lightly tugged his left ear between her thumb and forefinger, and he swatted her paws away with a laugh, and hugged her.

"Thanks, Sis…"

Connie ruffled his mane, and steered him out of her room. "Get some shut-eye, and I'll tell Hope about this tomorrow. We'll sort things out, Chance."

"'Kay. G'night." He said.

"Night."

* * *

'_Morning's here, oh joy…_' Regal Heart thought sourly as waves of nausea swept over her. She was supposed to go to Take Care's office today to have her first sonogram for this pregnancy, but that meant getting out of bed…and praying to the porcelain god. Or not. She didn't always get sick every morning, but one thing was certain. She did _not_ feel good. She comforted herself with the knowledge that it would pass soon enough, and slowly turned over to see how her stomach would behave when she moved. '_So far so good…_' she thought, '_No better, but no worse either._'

Stellar Heart Tiger lay curled up beside her, purring softly on every exhalation, and Regal smiled and gently nudged his chin.

"Wake up, sleepy head." She said, smiling wider as he groaned.

"S'too early…" he mumbled, burying his face in his pillow.

"C'mon, we've got things to do. Sonogram, remember?" she said. "Don't you want to know if our baby is healthy?"

He sat up a little, waking up some more. "Oh, yeah. That's today, isn't it? Sure I do." He smiled at her, and she tried not to look as ill as she felt.

'_Seems like I'm always pregnant…Uh-oh…_' She pressed a paw over her mouth and vaulted out of bed, running for the bathroom.

Stellar's forehead wrinkled in concern, but he knew better than to follow her. She preferred not to be observed, and he could understand that well enough; he was the same way. He got out of bed, stepped into his slippers, and padded silently out to wake his cubs. '_Soon I won't be able to call them cubs anymore…_' he thought sadly. He cheered himself with the thought of having a new baby in the house. He was really getting the hang of this 'Dad' thing…

Getting everybody out of bed was a bit of a fiasco. Hope mumbled 'Just five more minutes' twice before Stellar responded with 'No, not five more minutes, now. You had _ten_ extra minutes. C'mon, Hopie, we're burning daylight.' Chance bounced out of bed immediately, and he spent the next ten minutes in constant motion, clamoring for his turn in the bathroom and pounding on Connie's door.

"Mmph…" Connie groaned. She had locked her door out of habit, but her parents had a 'key'. It was really a sardine tin opener, but it fit in the tiny hole in her doorknob, and with a little know-how one could pick the lock. Regal and Stellar had become very adept at this, since Connie now had a separate room from Hope, and was _very_ hard to get out of bed. In this she took after her mother, but these days Regal's stomach was waking her up.

Chance jiggled the doorknob, and said, "I'm coming in!"

"You're being a pain…" was Connie's mumbled reply.

"Gotta get up today! Remember what you promised?"

Connie reluctantly got out of bed, and braced the stiffness out of her back with a crackling sound. "Yeah…"

"Rise and shi-ine!" Chance called in a singsong voice.

"I'll rise, but I won't shine…" said Connie as she emerged from her room and followed her jittery younger brother down to the kitchen. "Chance?"

"Yup?" he asked as he walked around the kitchen, looking at this and that, and hardly pausing to rest.

"Did you, by any chance, put a funnel in your mouth and empty a five-pound bag of sugar down your throat?" she looked at him askance, and he grinned.

"No, but that's not a bad idea!"

"Oh yes it is." Said Regal as she entered the kitchen, looking less ill than before, "You're hyper enough, bucko."

She got a carton of eggs out of the refrigerator, and Connie took it from her.

"I got it, Mom. Sit."

Regal, pleasantly surprised, said, "Are you sure?"

"Sure. You look sorta…well, just sit down." Connie said.

Hope looked over, frowning dubiously. "Want me to help you? You've never cooked."

Connie drew herself up, and glared. "Hey, I've cooked!"

"Well…" Hope hesitated. Making s'mores in the microwave didn't really seem like cooking to her, but Connie seemed determined. It _was_ a nice gesture, and their mother did look tired.

"Any idiot can fry an egg." Continued Connie.

Chance gave her a rather smug grin, and jeered, "What's that say about _you, _Con?"

Contrary Heart brandished the skillet threateningly, but she was smiling just the same.

_More to come…_


	3. Chapter 3

"Secrets"

"Part 1: What They Don't Know..."

"Chapter 3"

_Author's Note: Here's the final chapter, and I know it's a bit short. Most chapters in the few chapter fics I've done are. Thanks for the reviews, and I hope you enjoy it. Thanks also to NebulaBelt, for letting me borrow Soulful Heart again. Edited for a minor inconsistency._

"Okay," said Regal Heart, "there's peanut butter and jelly for sandwiches, and there's cheese. Make sure Chance eats his lunch, or he'll be in the cookies before you can turn around. You don't want that."

"Yes, Mom." said Connie and Hope. They certainly didn't! Chance was a very active cub, but when he had sugar or caffeine it was much worse.

"I should be home in an hour or two; Daddy's going to check in with Brave Heart afterwards to find out what and where his Missions are for the day." she continued, sounding mildly envious of her husband. As with her other two pregnancies, she wasn't allowed to go on any Missions and she was plagued by boredom. At least this time around her cubs were a little older, and she wasn't having to watch them quite as closely as before. Having two 'teenaged' daughters certainly made things a bit easier, and they seemed to like helping out. "You know what to do if there's an emergency, right?"

"Yeah," the twins nodded again. They had Take Care's number on speed dial.

"Now, if No Heart shows up-" began Regal.

"We know," Hope cut her off, "Take Chance, and get behind the others."

"Good," said Regal, "And if there's no one else around?"

"Send up a distress signal, and run like thunder. Mom, we _know_ all this." Connie half-laughed, half-scolded.

"It never hurts to go over it again, Connie. This is important." Regal chided.

"I know." Connie had the grace to look properly chastened. Then she said, "Hey Mom, I know Chance is grounded, would it be okay if we took him with us if we went out?"

Hope looked curiously at her sister, and Regal looked suspicious. The lioness folded her arms, frowning slightly. "Where would you be going and why?"

Connie thought fast, and it struck her as mildly disturbing how easily the lie came out of her mouth. "Well, I wanted to go see Soulful Heart today. I sorta ticked him off yesterday, and I wanted to apologize. Hope wanted to return a book, so I thought we could do it all in one trip."

Hope kept her eyes on the floor, afraid their mother would see the guilt in them if she made eye contact. Connie, however, never looked away.

Regal wasn't looking at Hope, or she might have been even more suspicious than before. She could easily see how Connie might have upset Soulful; both of them had sharp tongues, and neither of them liked to back down. Ever. "Well...I want you to take your cell phone with you, and leave it on. I'll definitely be calling you. You be careful, all right?"

Connie barely stopped herself from sighing in relief, and smiled. "We will."

"Good." Regal hugged her and Hope, then looked around. "Where's your brother? And your father?"

As if in answer to her question, Stellar was heard yelling "No!" from the kitchen. Regal hurried to see what was going on, and she got there to find Chance being scolded.

"What did you think you were doing, sticking a fork in the toaster?" Stellar demanded.

"Bread was stuck..." Chance mumbled, hanging his head.

Stellar sighed. "Son, you know better than that. If that happens, you come and get us. Then we'll_ unplug_ the toaster and take care of it. Okay?"

Chance nodded, still looking down at his feet. Stellar put down the fork and hugged him.

"I'm not mad at you, Chance. What you did was dangerous...you could get hurt doing that." said Stellar.

"Okay..." Chance mumbled, embarrassed.

Stellar straightened up, and saw his wife in the doorway. "Ready to go?"

"Yeah, I think so." said Regal, hugging her son. "You be good for your sisters, okay?"

"Uh-huh." he nodded.

"Do as they say, and don't be stubborn." she said.

"What if they tell me to clean my room?" asked Chance.

"They won't." she said. "Your room's clean already."

"Well, what if they tell me to scrub the floors?" he asked.

Regal fought the urge to roll her eyes; this was an old game for Chance, and an even _older_ game for her. "They won't. I mopped yesterday."

Stellar did a double-take. "You _what?_ In your condition?"

Regal didn't fight it this time. "Stellar, we went over this before. I'm not made of glass. I won't break. I wasn't doing any heavy lifting, and I wasn't over-exerting myself. Besides, the floor needed it. Chance and I tracked in all that dirt and ash yesterday, and you were out on a Mission."

Stellar still didn't look happy, but he had to be satisfied with that.

Chance continued as if there had been no interruption. "What if they make me dust the house from top to bottom, do the wash, cook dinner, write three songs and do handsprings off the porch? Do I _still_ have to do as they say?"

Regal Heart laughed. "They won't make you do _any _of that. Now come on, you're being silly. Handsprings off the porch! Gimme a kiss." Chance obligingly kissed her cheek, and she hugged him again. "I'll be back soon. You behave for Connie and Hope."

"I will, Mommy."

"Good boy." she patted his cheek, and went to join her husband.  
The ligers watched their parents leave, and just as Hope opened her mouth to ask Connie what she had in mind, Chance said brightly, "Okay, will you show me what you can do now? Please, please, pretty please?"

"Wait a minute," Hope shook her head a little, and looked at Connie. "You told him? How come?"

Connie opened her mouth to speak, but again Chance cut in. "Oh, she told me _everything!_ Well, almost everything. I don't know what _you _can do yet, so will ya tell me? Huh? Huh? Huh?"

"Ummm..." Hope looked somewhat blind sided by his enthusiasm, but she had to laugh when she saw him waving his tail from side to side, almost like an excited puppy.

Connie sighed. "Long story short, he's one of us..."

Chance giggled. "I like the sound of that, 'One of us'...Makes it sound like we're spies or something. Or aliens from outer space! 'Luke, I am your fathah!'" He shoved Connie lightly, and she calmly got him in a headlock as she began to explain things to Hope. It took her a rather long time, since Chance wasn't the tamest of prisoners, and Hope even thought she saw him trying to bite.

Connie finally finished, still keeping a grip on Chance, and said, "So I thought we'd take him to one of our spots and see what he can do, and whether or not he can control it."

"And whether or not he can keep a secret..." Hope pointed out, looking worried.

"I _can!_" Chance looked indignantly up at Hope over Connie's elbow. "I can _too_ keep a secret! Secret Bear's got _nuffin' _on me!"

"Is that a fact?" smirked Connie, tickling him with her free paw.

Chance gave a high-pitched squeal, and tried harder to get away. "Stop it, you're gonna make me go to the bathroom! Lemmego!"

Connie let go of him, got her cell phone from the coffee table and turned it on. "We've got Mom's permission and everything. We just have to--Ack!" she squawked as Chance tackled her to the floor, sitting on her stomach and tickling her neck.

"Say 'uncle'!" he growled through his smile.

"No!" Connie shrieked, laughing in spite of herself. Hope clicked her tongue impatiently, and dragged their brother off.

"If Mom talks to Soulful and finds out we haven't been over there, there'll be a reckoning..." said Hope.

Connie pushed herself up on her elbows, and scowled. "And who says we're _not_ going over there? I was telling the truth about that, at least..."

"So you really did have a fight with him?" sighed Hope as Connie got to her feet and retrieved her cell phone from where it had fallen. "Do I even need to ask what it was about?"

"You don't." Connie said shortly, tucking the phone in her purse and heading for the door without looking back. Hope and Chance, knowing their cue when they saw it, shrugged and followed.

"Where are we going again?" asked Chance.

Connie sighed. "Just walk this way."

Since Connie and Hope weren't allowed to drive anywhere while they were babysitting Chance, they went on foot. Connie walked a little ahead of them, keeping her attention on the rainbow path, until she heard Hope giggling. She spun on her heel and caught Chance imitating her 'I'm ticked off' walk. He stopped immediately and hung his head as he put a finger to his mouth. Connie scowled. "Chance..."

"You _said _'walk this way'..." he mumbled, playing dumb. He knew perfectly well what she had meant, but somehow he just hadn't been able to help himself.

"Don't be a smarty-pants." Connie told him. "_Follow_ me, then. No making faces behind my back, and don't shove me from behind like you like to do."

Chance nodded, but stuck his tongue out at her back as soon as she presented it to him. Hope nudged him lightly and shook her head, and he sighed. "Party poopers..."

Connie led them in silence to Soulful Heart's house, and she didn't know whether she hoped he was home or not. Soulful Heart might be friends with their mother, and he might have helped raise her, but when someone hurt his feelings he wasn't the most forgiving person in the world. And she knew she had done just that. There was little time for her to gather her courage, since he was sitting on his front steps reading a book, perhaps waiting for Bright Heart or someone else to pick him up for a Mission. He hadn't seen them yet, but the way his ears oriented towards them it was plain he had heard them.

Connie slowed down considerably, and cleared her throat. "Um...Soulful?"

The fox slipped a bit of paper between the pages of his book and stood up, saying rather stiffly, "What do you want?"

Chance pointed an accusing finger at Connie, and said brightly, "Ooooh, is he ever _mad_ at _you,_ Connie! You can see it in his eyes--ulp!"

Connie clapped a paw over his mouth, but Soulful shook his head.

"No, he's right. Let him speak. Maybe _he'll_ at least speak the _truth!_" Soulful glared at Connie, and it was plain that he was still smarting from her refusal to come clean. It was probably more because she had lied about it than anything else. "Go on, Chance. Tell your sister what I think of liars."

Connie slowly removed her paw, but Chance now looked rather intimidated.

"Um...actu'lly, I'm done...No more input from Chance, nope, none at all." he took a step backwards, and hid behind Connie.

"Well, really..." Soulful snorted.

"Soulful," ventured Hope, "Connie was only trying to--"

"I don't care." he told her flatly. "I don't tolerate being lied to. Ever. I'm sorry, however, that she seems to find me _untrustworthy._"

"Oh, don't turn this into an opera!" Connie scoffed, finally beginning to grow angry. "I trust you as much as I trust my parents! Trust isn't the issue here!"

"Are you finished?" asked Soulful.

Connie looked to Hope, as if she expected support to come from her, but Hope merely shrugged. That one gesture seemed to say, '_What can_ I _do?_' clearer than any spoken words. Connie turned angry eyes to Soulful Heart now, and said, "I guess I am, yeah. I came here to apologize, but now I don't think I will. You want to be that way, you go right ahead."

Soulful opened his mouth, but Connie had turned away. He didn't call after her, mostly because his voice seemed to fail him. Hope gave another helpless shrug, looking regretful, but this really wasn't her fight. She followed Connie, who was in the process of storming away, and Chance hesitated. He looked back at Soulful, who actually looked like he was ready to cry, and bit his lip. "I don't know what Connie did, but she's sorry..."

"Chance!" Connie called without looking back, "Don't lag behind!"

Chance hurried to catch up with his sisters, and Soulful Heart visibly sagged. As angry as he had been, he had a feeling he had just made things worse. Was something like a lie worth fighting over? '_Yes.'_ he told himself. Since he still didn't know why she had lied, he had to wonder what she was hiding and why. Then again, maybe if he had handled it better, she would have told him. He wasn't the best at coaxing things out of people, but he could have tried, rather than giving her the evil eye. '_And now I'll be lucky if she ever speaks to me again. I went and ruined it..._' He turned and went inside.

* * *

"Can't you go back and talk to him, Connie?" Chance asked quietly, "He looked sad..." 

"I gave him a chance to listen, Chance. He didn't want to. And that's fine. If he wants to stew, let him. I'm done." Seeing his stricken look, she amended, "At least for today. Maybe he just needs more time to cool down. And to be honest, so do I."

Chance seemed mollified by that, and nodded. Then he said brightly, "Are we there yet?"

"Not yet." Connie chuckled, "And please, don't start _that_."

"Okay." he said agreeably enough as he followed her, but a moment later he repeated his question. "Are we there yet?"

"Not yet. What did I tell you?"

"Sorry."

Connie didn't believe for a minute that he was sorry, or that he wouldn't ask her again. Sure enough, two minutes later, Chance said with a big grin on his face, "Are we theeeeere yet?"

"No!" she snapped.

"I'm sorry! Sheesh..." Chance pouted, and kicked a rock.

"Yeah, sorry, sorry...Don't 'sorry' me..." Connie grumbled. In due time they reached a remote clearing, one with no grass. There was nothing but a wide stretch of clouds for about a mile, surrounded by trees. "Okay, Chance, we're here."

Chance had been waiting for her to say that. "I wanna go _hooooome!_"

Hope burst out laughing, and Connie laid back her ears. "Why you...Come _back_ here, you little monkey!" Chance broke into a run as Connie chased after him. Hope held her middle and sat down on a cloud puff, pointing as Connie chased their brother around in a circle, and laughing uncontrollably.

Connie was fast, but Chance kept changing directions like a hunted impala, and she was more of a sprinter than a distance runner. Finally, nettled by Hope's laughter and Chance's taunting calls of 'Nyaa-nyaa', Connie felt she'd had enough. She focused her energy through her tummy symbol, and yelled, "_Freeze!_"

Chance immediately froze on the spot. There was no inertia at all, no skidding, and no sense that he was even aware of what had happened. He had, in essence, done exactly what she had told him for once. It was as if time had completely stopped for him, since he wasn't even breathing. He was, for all intents and purposes, a flesh and blood statue. Connie stepped around his still form and stood in front of him, looking satisfied. "Nyaa-nyaa yourself."

Hope got to her feet and said reproachfully, "Now, Connie, there was no reason for you to do _that._"

"What?" Connie spread her paws, the picture of innocence. "He _asked_ me to show him. That's why we're here."

"I think he meant for you to demonstrate on _me._ You want to scare him?"

Connie sighed. "If I know Chance, he'll only ask me to do it again..."

"Con..."

"Oh, all right..." Connie looked at Chance, and visualized an invisible hand closed around him. She imagined the fingers unfurling like flower petals, and Chance stumbled forward and almost pitched face-first to the clouds. Connie was now in front of him, and he gaped in shock as he pointed at her.

"How'd you get there? You were back _there!_" he shrilled, then it clicked. "You _froze_ me, didn't you?"

Connie nodded, hoping she hadn't frightened him. "Yeah, I did. Sorry..."

"Are you _kidding?_ That was _cool!_ Do it again! On Hopie this time."

Connie looked at Hope as if asking permission, and Hope sighed. "All right, but only for a minute."

A moment later, Hopeful Heart stood completely motionless. Chance walked up to her, and examined her closely. "She's not breathin'..."

"It's okay. Touch her arm." Connie told him.

Chance cautiously touched Hope's arm, and Hope turned her head and looked at him. He jumped back with a yelp.

"If someone touches whoever I froze, they 'unfreeze'. We found that out the first time I fell asleep after freezing Hope, and a pigeon landed on her shoulder." explained Connie.

"Actually, it was a dove." Hope corrected her. "Poor little thing got a real shock when it realized I wasn't a statue."

"Dove, pigeon, whatever. Your turn, Hopie." said Connie.

Hope nodded, and engaged her talent. Chance didn't notice any real change at first, but after a moment he noticed that the air around her shimmered a little. The first image that came to his mind was the heat distortion over the flames of their barbecue. '_Flames..._' He shivered a little. He had learned from his father to be afraid of fire, but at the same time he was strangely fascinated by it. His mind must have wandered a little, because he heard Hope nervously ask Connie if she had frozen him again.

"I'm okay." he said.

"Good." Hope looked relieved. She held out her paw, stopping just inside of the 'distortion', and said, "Try to touch my hand, Chance."

Chance did as he was told. Or, at least, he _tried_ to. His paw met with a strange resistance about an inch away from hers. He tried knocking on it, but even though his paw made no sound it was like he was tapping on a brick wall. "How strong is it?"

Hope shrugged. "I don't know yet...I know it'll probably stop rocks, but...I don't know about magic." She was thinking about No Heart.

Connie stepped a little closer, and said, "Better let me in, Hope. Chance...it's your turn. If you want to."

Chance wasn't sure if he _did_ want to. He remembered the vivid terror that had gripped him the day before, but he also felt compelled to do it again. He had felt this compulsion since the terror had worn off, and though he still had an intense respect and fear of fire, he found it strangely..._beautiful_. It wasn't that he wanted to burn things, and he knew it was a very dangerous responsibility that had been laid upon him, but he couldn't help wanting to make the fire again. If he could control it, so much the better; it meant he wouldn't accidentally hurt someone. But he didn't know if he _could_ control it. That was what he was there to find out. He shivered again. His father had been horrified the day before when he thought his son was just playing with matches. How would he react if he found out about this? He knew that Connie and Hope kept their abilities a secret, and well they might, but Chance didn't have to be told twice not to tell anyone. "_If Dad_ _finds out about _this_, what will he think of me...?_"

Connie, now in the bubble with her sister, saw his hesitation and took pity. "Chance...you don't have to do this if you don't want to. All you have to do is promise not to tell anyone about Hope and I. That's all."

Chance shook his head resolutely. "No, I want to. If I can..." He turned away from them, and stared out over the clouds. There seemed to be plenty of room. He hadn't the slightest idea how to start, and though he tried and tried, he just couldn't seem to make it happen. Thinking hard, he tried to remember exactly how he had done it the day before. '_Okay...I was mad. Maybe I have to be mad, or it won't work._' He wasn't angry, and he didn't think he could just _make_ himself angry. '_C'mon, Chance, you're making yourself look bad. There has to be something that gets ya hot under the collar...THINK, darn it!_' But he was frustrated, not angry. He sighed. "I can't do it."

"Why not?" Connie asked, trying not to sound impatient.

"I...I'm not mad." he mumbled.

"Pardon?" she cupped a paw behind her ear.

"I said I'm not mad." he said a little louder. "I was mad when I did it before. It just sort of happened...I don't know how to do it. Couldn't you...I dunno...insult me or something?"

Connie quirked an eyebrow, looking confused. "Say what?"

"Call me names." he said.

"No." she frowned incredulously.

"I want you to. Call me...um..." he couldn't think of anything that was bad enough to make him angry.

Hope tried a different tactic. "Is there anyone you don't like, someone who's done something so bad that you get angry whenever you think of them?"

Chance pondered this for a moment, and a pair of glowing red eyes surrounded by darkness and a cowl appeared in his mind. "No Heart does."

"That's good. Use that." Hope said.

Chance faced away from them, and closed his eyes. '_No Heart...Okay, think of something bad that he did...Kidnapping Connie when she was little. Trying to kidnap us...hmm..._' He suddenly remembered one encounter, or rather, the effects of that encounter. His parents had left him with his sisters no more than a month ago, and had gone to help the others drive No Heart away from the Kingdom of Caring. He knew very little of what had happened, but he knew that No Heart had taunted their mother, and she had seemed to be in shock when she came home. She was in a fog for the rest of the evening until she was doing the dishes. Then she had stared at the cup dispenser for a long time and broken down crying.

Chance had no way of knowing that No Heart's taunting had centered around the death of her parents, and that he had told her, "By the time I was through with them, there wasn't enough left of them to fill a Dixie Cup!" All he knew was that his father had held her for a long time, and she had been nearly inconsolable. All because of No Heart. Chance's lip twitched back in a sneer as he remembered this image. Truly, he would never forget it. '_No Heart...Making my mother **cry!**_'

His tummy symbol flashed red for a mere fraction of a second before shooting a ball of lava to the clouds in front of him. He gasped; this wasn't what had happened before! The lava seemed to be disappearing, but Connie quickly froze it before he realized what had happened. It was burning a hole through the clouds, and if they were above a place with a lot of people...

Chance didn't know it, but the intensity of his anger was what governed the fire. If he wasn't angry, he simply wouldn't be able to do it. If he let his talent go when he experienced fury, the results would be much more than a garden-sized fire.

Connie and Hope were staring open-mouthed at him, and he looked guiltily at his feet. "I'm sorry..."

Hope let down her shield, and lifted his chin with her paw. "There's nothing to be sorry for, Chance. And there won't be, if you learn to control it. You have to learn what makes it happen and how to stop it. So don't worry. No harm done, and it's gonna be okay."

Chance bit his lip, but he soon lost his battle and hugged his sister to hide his tears. He was scared, probably more than he had ever been in his life. "I won't tell _anyone_." he sniffled, "I'll _never_ tell. Never..."

Connie couldn't take her eyes off the hardening ball of lava. It would stay semi-liquid for a good long time unless they could cool it in some way to keep it from continuing its trek through the cloud floor beneath them. "Hopie..." she said quietly.

"Hm?"

"There aren't any fish in the Rainbow River, are there?"

* * *

Three days later, Chance was his old self again. He didn't ask to go along with his sisters when they went off to 'practice', but he kept their secret as well as his own. Someday, he knew, he would go off with them to participate. But 'someday' hadn't come yet, and he wanted to put it off as long as he could and just be a cub for a while. Connie, for her part, was wondering about the ball of obsidian that had once been lava, which was somewhere in the Rainbow River. They were able to move it by creating a bubble around it, much like the one they had seen their father create around the smashed jar of spiders Connie had dropped. It wouldn't have been strong enough to hold a ball of lava for very long, but with Hope's talent they had strengthened the bubble and successfully dumped the lava ball into the River. 

Now Connie was worried about someone finding the evidence, because a ball of obsidian had no Earthly business lying at the bottom of the Rainbow River. She decided to go and get it, and after writing a note for her parents she left the house to do so. She wasn't sure of the exact spot, but she remembered the basic appearance of it. All she had to do was walk up the river a bit. By and by, she came across Soulful Heart. He hadn't said a word to her since their last encounter, but then again she hadn't really seen him either. She halted, and considered turning around, but something stopped her. Something about the set of his ears might have had something to do with it; they drooped a little, sticking out to the sides rather than straight up. Now that she looked at him, he had been staring at the same page for an awfully long time. 'Something _has his knickers in a twist..._' she thought, approaching him cautiously.

"You all right?" she asked.

Soulful looked up at her, and she saw no anger in his eyes. Only sadness.

"Mind if I sit down?" she pointed to the ground beside him, and he buried his nose in his book again.

"I can't prevent you." he said in a monotone.

Connie sat down, not giving him a chance to change his mind, and said, "Now, you know darn well that you can."

"Can I really?" he asked, somewhat bitterly. "I _know_ I'm not your father, Connie. You've made it abundantly clear that you're no longer under any obligation to obey me. But you don't have to rub my nose in it that you don't respect me."

"Where did you get the idea that I don't respect you?" she asked him, feeling guilt begin to show itself with a sickening hollow feeling in her stomach. She was used to it. She didn't let on that she felt anything of the sort.

He looked up, meeting her gaze directly. "You _lied_ to me." his voice wavered a little, "You looked me in the eye, and you _lied_."

Connie dropped her gaze, unable to maintain eye contact. Only then did she realize just how badly she had hurt him. '_I didn't _have_ to lie. I could have told him where we were and still kept the secret. I could have just said Hope and I were out having fun, just having some sister time, and he might have accepted that. He might not have even known there _was_ a secret then, but he certainly does now. And I hurt him because of it._'

"I didn't deserve that, Connie." he looked away.

"You're right." she said quietly. "Would it help if I said I was sorry?"

"Are you?" he asked, as if he didn't believe her.

"_Yes_. Soulful...I'll be an adult in a few months. I know I've grown much faster than any human, but it can't come soon enough for me. I...I don't want to have to check in with people all the time, and I don't want to explain myself every time I go somewhere. I don't like being talked down to, and I hate it when people ask me 'Where were you' without so much as a preamble. That's why I lied to you, and I'm sorry. You have no _idea _how sorry." she said. She wished he would look at her so that she could tell what he was thinking.

He merely sighed, and continued to look out over the River. She still couldn't see his face, but she didn't tell him to look at her. Her part of the conversation was still in the 'testing the waters' stage, and she knew she'd have to tread carefully to avoid upsetting him all over again.

Finally, he spoke. "I'm not good at this. At all. So listen closely, because I'll only say this once. I won't ask you to tell me where you were a few nights ago, and what you were doing...but in return, I want you to give me your absolute promise that you'll _tell_ me if you even think you and Hope are in some kind of danger. If not me, someone else, like your parents. I reserve the right to ask you such questions in the future, and I'll want...no, I'll _expect_ a truthful answer from you, even if it's just to tell me you don't want to say. Not what I'd like to hear, but it's better than a lie."

Connie nodded. "I promise. And I really am sorry..."

He looked at her, and finally he nodded, deciding to believe her.

"So..." she said, forgetting all about the obsidian, "What're you reading?"

"Dostoyevsky." he said, not looking up.

"Yeah?" she smirked, "Who's it by?"

Soulful looked up at her, squinching the left half of his face in an expression of pure skepticism.

"Kidding..." Connie chuckled weakly.

Soulful gave a long-suffered sigh, and went back to his book. "Kids..."

END


End file.
